The Blue Balloon
by 221BelieveInSherlock
Summary: Kid!Lock to Old!Lock. UP Alternate Universe. If you've seen UP (well, the first 10 minutes or so), that's what this is, just with John and Sherlock instead of Carl and Ellie.


**A/N:** Hey guys, how are we all? Okay so this is my first story so I hope it lives up to Sherlock fanfiction expectations.  
It's a Sherlock AU, an UP Sherlock AU. I don't know if this has been done before, but I was watching UP and thought it sounded like a good idea.  
It's only a small one-shot 5000 word story, but I may add to it as it has a lot of snapshots (like the movie) and could do with the space filled in.  
This fic is also on AO3 under the same title and pen name.

**DISCLAIMER: **I don't own Sherlock or any of the characters, blah blah blah. You know the drill.

Anyway, enough of my blabbing. On with the story...

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When John grows up, he wants to be an explorer, an explorer like Charles Muntz. John was wearing his leather flight helmet and goggles today, he got some stares as he walked with his mother to the movie theatre to watch the daily news, but John didn't care. On the news today, was a story about a place in South America: 'Paradise Falls' an area free from civilisation full of plants and animals unknown to mankind. Charles Muntz, the explorer appears on-screen. He has been on a yearlong adventure on his airship, 'The Spirit of Adventure'. He had been to 'Paradise Falls' and uncovered a skeleton of a giant bird. The scientists back in the USA that examined the bones declared Muntz to be a fake, and he is stripped from his titles. Humiliated, Muntz vows to return to 'Paradise Falls' and find this bird alive and not return until he does so. John feels as though he's witnessed a miracle. His hero is going to show people that he is a great explorer.  
John is running down the street holding his own 'Spirit of Adventure', a blue balloon with 'the Spirit of Adventure' handwritten on it. John is flying, (just like Charles Muntz). John jumps over a small rock (He hurdles Pike's Peak!), he jumps over a crack in the sidewalk (He hurdles the Grand Canyon!), he tries to jump over a tree stump, but smacks into it instead, deciding to walk around it (He hurdles Mount Everest! He... goes around Mount Everest!).

"Adventure is out there!"  
John stops and looks around. 'Who said that?' John wondered. The voice came from an old house; windows boarded up and the lawn overgrown with weeds, he realised. He hears a creaking noise and looks up towards the roof; the weather vane is turning, John can see it being pulled by ropes. John decides he will go and find this mysterious voice.

As John enters the house, he hears the voice again, "Look out! Mount Rushmore! Hard to starboard. Must get the Spirit of Adventure over Mount Rushmore..."  
John walks toward the voice, and he hears it again, "Hold together old girl. How're my dogs doing? Ruff, ruff!"  
John follows the voice toward the living room. "All engines ahead full! Let's take her up to 26,000 feet! Rudders eighteen degrees towards the south."  
John rounds the corner to see... an eight year old boy, his curly black hair barely visible beneath his flight helmet and goggles. Bare footed, his overalls are patched and dirty. John is amazed; the old house has been transformed into a make-believe cockpit. The boy steers, the wheel made from a rusty old bicycle.  
"It's a beautiful day, winds out of the east at ten knots. Visibility... unlimited. Enter the weather in the logbook!" He yells at the navigator (his hamster), and it skitters on its spinning wheel. Sherlock uses two tied-together Coke bottles as binoculars.  
"Oh! There's something down there! I will bring it back for science... Awwwwh, it's a puppy!"  
John hears Sherlock speaking, but is too distracted by the Charles Muntz newspaper clippings taped to the wall to hear what he said.  
"No time! A storm! Lightning! Hail!"

Sherlock pops up in front of John, "What are you doing!?" He asks John accusingly. John screams. He lets go of his balloon. It floats through the broken ceiling and disappears.  
Sherlock circles John, staring him down. "Don't you know this is an exclusive club? Only explorers get in here. Not just any kid off the street with a helmet and a pair of goggles. Do you think you got what it takes?! Well, do you?!"  
John looks intimidated, not sure how to reply. Before he can even reply, Sherlock starts talking again.  
"Alright, you're in. Welcome aboard." He offers his hand. John looks down, embarrassed, not taking the offered hand.  
Sherlock looks unsure of himself, "What's wrong? Can't you talk?"  
John is frozen. Sherlock softens and says, "Hey, I don't bite." He takes off his helmet and his hair goes out in all directions. He then removes a homemade 'GRAPE SODA CAP' pin from his shirt and pins it on John with a smile, saying "You and me, we're in a club now."

John smiles back.  
"I saw where your balloon went. Come on, let's go get it!" John watches him stride out of the room. He pops back in and with a wink, tells John, "The name's Sherlock Holmes" and he grabs John's hand, John blushes as Sherlock pulls him out of the room to where the balloon has floated to.  
"There it is." John and Sherlock look across the attic at the balloon. Between them the floor has collapsed, save one rickety piece of wood. John gulps seeing this.  
"Well, go ahead." Sherlock pushes him out onto the beam. "Go on."  
John steels his courage. He puts on his goggles, and starts moving forward... All of a sudden, he falls through the floor.  
"JOHN!" Sherlock cries and he rushes down the stairs to the lounge room to help him.  
"I'm fine, 'lock. Although my arm..." He cuts off his sentence and tears begin to well up in his eyes. John doesn't want to cry in front of his new friend.  
Sherlock grabs a piece of cloth from the cockpit and ties it around John's arm and neck to keep his arm still. "Can you walk John? The man down the road is a doctor. He can help you, okay?"  
"O- okay." John replies as he stands up and they make their way out of the house and down the street.  
The doctor takes John to the hospital, while Sherlock goes to tell John's mum what's happened. John's mum takes Sherlock home and she goes to the hospital to bring John home.

Later that night, John in bed, reading a book by flashlight, his arm in a cast. John's blue balloon floats into the room and John jumps and screams. A head pops up from outside the open window. "Hey John!"  
John screams again, hitting himself in the face with his cast, "Ow!"  
Sherlock climbs into John's room through the window. "Thought you might need a little cheerin' up. I got somethin' to show you!"  
Sherlock and John crawl under a blanket tent with a flashlight. Sherlock whispers, "I am about to let you see something I have never shown to another human being. Ever. In my life." John's eyes widen in alarm.

"You'll have to swear you will not tell anyone." John nods. "Cross your heart. Do it!" John crosses his heart, so Sherlock shows John what he's never showed anyone. Ever. "My Adventure Book!" It's an old photo album with the words "My Adventure Book" written across the front. He opens the book to a photo of Charles Muntz. "You know him?" Sherlock asks as he points to the photo. John smiles excitedly. Sherlock tells John about his plan, "Charles Muntz, explorer. When I get big, I'm going where he's going: South America." He turns the page to a map. "It's like America... but south... Wanna know where I'm gonna live?" Sherlock doesn't give John a chance to answer, turning to an engraving of a large waterfall. A small hand-drawn picture of Sherlock's clubhouse is glued to the top. "Paradise Falls, a land lost in time... I'm gonna move my clubhouse there, and park it right next to the falls. Who knows what lives up there? And once I get there..." Sherlock stops talking as he flips through his book, revealing a page marked, 'Stuff I'm Going To Do', but there's nothing on the pages after that. John shoots Sherlock a confused look.  
"Well, I'm saving these pages for all the adventures I'm gonna have. Only... I just don't know how I'm gonna get to Paradise Falls." Sherlock closes the book, disappointed. John has a thought. He looks at his toy blimp and Sherlock follows his gaze. "That's it! You can take us there in a blimp! Swear you'll take us. Cross your heart! Cross it! Cross your heart."  
John crosses his heart. Sherlock looks satisfied with this. "Good. You promised. No backing out." John shakes his head, signalling no.  
"Well, see you tomorrow kid! Bye." Sherlock hops up and jumps out the window. "Adventure is out there!"  
He pops back in. "You know, you don't talk very much. I like you."  
John looks out the window after him in amazement. He rests his head on his balloon. "Wow." John doesn't even notice when the balloon pops. 'I think I like Sherlock' this thought makes John blush, but he also smiles, 'I think I like Sherlock.' John has a good sleep that night, dreaming of all the adventures he and Sherlock will have.

Years passed and John and Sherlock were closer than ever. They continued to play together every day while they are in the abandoned house. They fly 'The Spirit of Adventure', Sherlock as the captain and pilot and John as his co-pilot and navigator after the death of his Hamster; Redbeard.  
John still liked Sherlock and now that he was growing up his feelings were growing stronger. He wasn't going to tell Sherlock this though, he didn't want to ruin their friendship or deal with rejection. Little did John know, Sherlock liked him as well. He didn't want to tell John either, even though he was certain he deduced John liked him. He could've read John wrong because he's so quiet, which has happened before. Sherlock being wrong is the only reason he hasn't said anything, well that and he doesn't want to lose his only and best friend.  
It's about the time they turn 13 that they stop playing games and start planning their journey to 'Paradise Falls and their life together. They weren't "together" yet, but John hoped his lingering touches and over-praising were meaning something to Sherlock and he would tell John that he liked him. Sherlock noticed John's lingering touches and how much more he praised and complimented him. 'Maybe John likes me back. I was right, I did deduce him right! Now I can act on it... Right?' Sherlock set his plan in to motion. Next time he walked John home, he would say goodbye on his doorstep like he usually did, but before walking off he would give John a peck on the cheek and then leave like normal.

Today was the day, Sherlock was so busy going over how he was going to say goodbye to John, he didn't hear John asking him if he'd like to go out for lunch tomorrow. "Sherlock?" Sherlock shook himself out of his Mind Palace after hearing John say his name, "Sorry John, what was that?" "Uh... It doesn't matter. Don't worry 'lock." John said, a small amount of disappointment layering his voice. "Okay, if you're sure" Sherlock replied, knowing that it actually did matter to John and he had failed his John, again.  
They reached John's doorstep in no time and Sherlock put his plan into action. "Tomorrow, same place and time?" "Of course John." Sherlock replied with a smile. "Well, goodnight 'lock" John said with touch to Sherlock's arm. "Goodnight John." 'Here I go' Sherlock thought as he lent in and kissed John on the cheek. He pulled back and saw the blush and small smile on John's face. "Goodnight Sherlock" said John with a quick kiss on Sherlock's cheek and then he ran inside leaving Sherlock grinning on his doorstep like a fool.

Their relationship progressed steadily over the years. It took a few months before they decided to come out to publicly, and most people were fine with it, with them being gay, there were a few people however who came after John and Sherlock. There were more than a few black eyes, bruises, and broken bones, but John and Sherlock didn't let this hurt their relationship. If anything, it made it stronger, it showed them how much they really loved and cared for each other.

Their first date was a picnic in the hills. They ran up the hillside together and when they reached the top Sherlock and John lay side by side on a picnic blanket. Sherlock describes the clouds. John watches as a cloud transforms into a turtle and then he closes his eyes and smiles. He's lucky to be with Sherlock.

The day Sherlock and John started their new jobs is another day that they both remember quite well. Sherlock emerged from New Scotland Yard, dressed in his detective 'uniform'; a pair of black slacks, a purple button up shirt, a Belstaff coat, and a deerstalker.  
John was out the front of NSY when Sherlock walked out and he showed off his new book cart with trademark balloons tied to the handle. Behind him the balloons lifted his cart off the ground. John jumped up to catch it and Sherlock smirked.

The day Sherlock proposed to John was one of the best moments of both of their lives. Sherlock and John were sitting side by side in their chairs, reading, hands intertwined when Sherlock stood up suddenly and left the room telling John not to move. John didn't know what was happening, and gave Sherlock a confused look when he came back into the room. "John Watson, I love you with my whole heart, mind, and soul. You mean the world to me and when I met you all those years ago; I knew you were something special. I want to spend the rest of my life with you, so John Hamish Watson, will you marry me?" Sherlock said as he went down on one knee. John sat there unshed tears in his eyes, started to fall. "John?" Sherlock looked unsure "Is everything okay? What did I do wrong?" "Nothing Sherlock, you did nothing wrong. Yes, yes, yes, a thousand times yes. I will marry you, the love of my life, William Sherlock Scott Holmes." Sherlock placed the ring on John's finger and pulled out a second ring, handed it to John and let John place it on his finger. "I love you Sherlock." John said as he kissed him passionately before leading him to the bedroom.

It had been 11 years since John first heard Sherlock's voice in that old building. 9 years since John and Sherlock realised how much they liked each other. 6 years since Sherlock kissed John that night. 1 year since John proposed to Sherlock. 3 hours until Sherlock and John were to be married. Sherlock and John were both pacing their separate rooms. Sherlock worried that John would regret marrying a man who is a git most of the time, deducing people to tears. John was worried Sherlock would regret it because John was plain and boring and Sherlock could do so much better than him. Before either of them knew it, it was time to get married. The ceremony went off without a hitch and when it was time to kiss the people went crazy... Well, the people on Sherlock's side of the church did. His family was so happy he found someone. Before John, Sherlock was a 'freak', the 'psychopath', but then John came along and Sherlock was happy. John's side of the church sat rigid, clapping politely. They weren't happy about John's decision; marrying a man. How could he do that to his family, drop this bombshell that he was gay and getting married? John's family didn't attend the reception, but even so John still had a fantastic time with his new husband and his new family.

Instead of having a honeymoon, John and Sherlock started saving money for their trip to South America and Paradise Falls. They moved houses within a week of getting married. Sherlock's parents brought them the house John and Sherlock met in as children. They do the finishing touches inside the house; they pushed their two chairs into place side by side in the living room. They then go outside, to really complete the whole house, by painting 'Sherlock & John's on their mailbox. John leans in to admire Sherlock's work but leaves a messy paint handprint on the mailbox. Sherlock adds his handprint as well. They smile at the beginning of their new life together.

"Adoption. I want to adopt" Sherlock said in passing conversation to John. "Really?" John replied with a huge grin on his face. "Of course John. This is not something to joke about. I want a child. In fact, I've already found the child I like. Here take a look." Sherlock handed John his laptop in which he had already been in contact with adoption agencies and he had the child up on screen. "Sherlock... I'm meant to have a say in this too. It is a pretty important decision." "You will have a say. You will say yes." John gave an exasperated sigh. "Well, he does look cute." John said while looking at the 8 year old boy, Russell on screen. "So that's a yes?" Sherlock asked. "Yes, Sherlock. Oh God, yes."  
Sherlock was in touch with the agency later that day and a meeting was arranged for later that week so they could meet with the adoption home and meet young Russell.

It was the day before Sherlock and John were set to meet up with the agency when they got the call to meet the owner of the home at the hospital. They knew something was wrong, but they were not told what. It was only when they reached the hospital they were told what had happened. Russell had been playing with a group of boys out the back of the home, when a group of 12 year old boys had gone up to Russell and starting pushing and shoving him around. He tripped and fell and smacked his head on the pavement. He died en route to the hospital, bleeding to the brain.  
Sherlock let a few tears fall, as John stood stoically behind him with a hand on his shoulder before Sherlock stood up and wrapped John in his arms.  
The next few weeks were extremely hard knowing they weren't bringing that young boy home with them. The next few months, things got easier, but they still wondered what it'd be like if there was a little boy running around.

John was inside cleaning when he found Sherlock's Adventure Book. He flicked through the book before having an idea. He saw Sherlock sitting in his chair and went over to join him, handing him the Adventure Book. She smiles up at John, knowing what they should do.  
Sherlock paints a mural of their house atop Paradise Falls on the wall above the fireplace. John organizes a compass, map, binoculars, and a native bird figurine beneath the painting. They call it their shrine to Adventure.  
John sets a jar on a table with, "PARADISE FALLS" written on it. Sherlock drops in a few coins, looks at John and crosses his heart. John crosses his in return.  
It takes time but the jar slowly fills as John and Sherlock toss in spare change.

Sherlock and John are pulling into the driveway after a weekend away when the car blows a tire. The two stand by the jar, reluctant to use the money. John breaks the jar and takes out the coins to buy a new tire.  
It's only three months later when they have to break the jar again because John is in the hospital with a broken leg.  
Six months later, a wild storm rages and a tree falls on the roof, crushing part of the house. John breaks the jar so they can pay for repairs.

Thankfully, the tree incident is the last major incident that requires them to spend their 'Paradise Falls' money.

John and Sherlock are on their way to Mycroft Holmes' and Gregory Lestrade's wedding. John is standing in the hallway struggling to tie his tie. Sherlock smiles at John and helps him tie it. They walk out the front door, smiling, arm in arm.

Sherlock struggles to tie John's tie as they rush out the door to attend an awards ceremony for Sherlock and his achievements as New Scotland Yard's best and only 'Consulting Detective'.

As the years go on, John still struggles to tie his tie and every time, Sherlock ties and straightens it for him.

Older John and Sherlock smile at themselves in the hall mirror, ready to go out for dinner at Angelo's for their 40th wedding anniversary.

John and Sherlock still work happily, John at his book cart, and Sherlock at Scotland Yard. When they get home from their day, John tells Sherlock about the people he's met and books he sold, in turn Sherlock tells John about the case he's been on.

John and Sherlock dance in the evening candlelight after a particularly bad day for Sherlock. They're dancing to their wedding waltz Sherlock composed on the violin, 50 years after they married. The 'PARADISE FALLS' jar sits off to the side of the room, now dusty and forgotten.

John and Sherlock are cleaning their house, John on the inside, Sherlock on the outside. John vacuums the Adventure Shrine on the mantle. He smiles at a photo of Sherlock as a child, wearing his flight helmet andgoggles. He looks up at the mural of their house at ParadiseFalls. His smile fades, knowing he hasn't kept his promise and that their dream has goneunfulfilled. Suddenly John has an idea, he smiles at the mural and at the 'PARADISE FALLS' jar.

The next day, John has off and while Sherlock is at work, he uses the 'PARADISE FALLS' money and buys two tickets to South America.

John knows how he's going to surprise Sherlock. They'll go for a picnic in the hills where they had their first date. John is excited; he hurries excitedly up 'picnic hill'. He's hidden the airlinetickets in his basket. Sherlock will open the basket to get the food out like he usually does and instead he will see the tickets sitting on top, smile at John, they will continue their picnic and then go home and get ready to leave for a months' time. Behind him, Sherlock falters and falls. He tries to get up but falls again. 'Something is wrong.' John thought as he ran to her.

John rushes Sherlock to the hospital. They're told there's nothing that can be done, old age. It happens to everyone at some point, Sherlock's time is now.

He lies in a hospital bed looking through his Adventure Book, when a blue balloon floats in to the room. John is standing at the door. He smiles and walks to his bedside. Sherlock pushes his Adventure Book toward John. He weakly pats John's cheek and adjusts his tie.

John kisses him on the forehead. "I love you John" Sherlock said, a tear rolling down his face.

"I love you too Sherlock" John replied as he held his hand. "Sherlock... You... you told me once that you weren't a hero. Umm, there were times I didn't even think you were human. But let me tell you this, you were the best man, the most human... human being that I've ever known, and no-one will ever convince me that you told me a lie, so there. I was so alone, and I owe you so much. But, please, there's just one more thing, one more thing, one more miracle, Sherlock, for me..." At this, Sherlock's heart flat lined the single drawn out beep of the heart monitor the only sound in the room, John began to sob. "Don't be... dead. Would you do that just for me? Just stop it. Stop this."

Sherlock didn't give John is miracle, he was gone forever. There is no more Sherlock and John, it's just John now, John Hamish Watson-Holmes. Even though he doesn't have his Sherlock with him anymore, Sherlock still held all of John's heart and he still loved him. Nothing was ever going to change. Sherlock was John's and John was Sherlock's.

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And there you have it folks. That's the end of my story. So, what did you think? Please review and let me know, good or bad, what your opinions are.  
Thanks for reading :)


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